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“Cleanup in Aisle Five”
Rubbermaid® engineer becomes stock boy to make innovative restocking truck a reality
Winchester, Va. (February 02, 2003) – When Rubbermaid® Commercial Products (RCP) Designer Rad Arceta began research for what would become the latest innovation in transporting packaged goods and stocking shelves, little did he know he would be putting on a smock and joining in.
StockMate™ is the result of careful planning, detailed research and plenty of end-user input. But to ensure no stone was left unturned during the design process, Arceta went beyond observation and literally “made work his life” by living the role of the end user. As Arceta explains, it all started with 20 sketches and a trip to the grocery store.
“I had no idea I would learn so much from watching people stock shelves,” said Arceta. “But after visiting about 15 stores and dozens of stock crews, the ideas for our new restocking truck just came alive.”
Among Arceta’s ideas for RCP’s newest innovation was the development of a deck that could hinge and fold, allowing it to become a smaller unit. According to Arceta, this feature was the result of great end user input.
“I was talking with one particular crew member during his morning shift,” said Arceta. “While stocking some shelves, he mentioned that the loads in the morning were usually much smaller than the ones at night. He also said it was sometimes difficult to maneuver the carts around the store when it gets busy.
Realizing he had something there, Arceta went back to the drawing board and returned to the store a few weeks later with a drawing of the hinged model. The response according to Arceta - “They absolutely loved it.”
Another one of StockMate’s key features is the BoxMate‘ cardboard management system. While it might seem fair to assume this invention was born from simple observations, it is, in fact, the result of Arceta actually lugging around a cart and stocking shelves.
“There I was filling the shelves and going through box after box. I soon realized that all this cardboard was becoming a potential hazard, if not a nuisance. So I went back to my now more-developed CAD drawings and designed a three-position, adjustable holder that became the BoxMate. After a few more stocking experiences, I also added a side-mounted work platform for storing small tools and opening boxes. Once again, the response was overwhelming.”
Arceta was now ready to build a prototype. But before an actual model was built, RCP needed to go back to the grocery stores with a rough mock-up to ensure the entire design would be met with approval. To save on costs, Arceta used whatever he could find to simulate the latest StockMate CAD drawing. From PVC pipe and welded parts of plastic deck to foam core and cardboard, the “Frankenstein” prototype, as Arceta called it, did achieve one important step – determining the final product.
“When I look back at my experiences at these grocery stores, I can’t imagine having designed such an efficient restocking truck without going through the paces myself. And as a bonus, I now know that if I ever want to change careers, there will always be a restocking truck with boxes waiting for me.”
